


the gaps between you and I

by amuk



Category: Persona 3, Persona Series
Genre: Developing Relationship, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Gen, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, Introspection, Loss, Missing Scene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-23
Updated: 2020-06-23
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:20:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,881
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24885241
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amuk/pseuds/amuk
Summary: Friendship. That had a nice ring to it. Mitsuru stared at the group of people living in the dorm and realized she wasn’t as alone as she thought.
Relationships: Aigis & Kirijo Mitsuru, Aigis & Koromaru (Persona Series), Aragaki Shinjiro & Kirijo Mitsuru, Aragaki Shinjiro & Sanada Akihiko, Kirijo Mitsuru & Koromaru, Kirijo Mitsuru & Sanada Akihiko, Kirijo Mitsuru & Takeba Yukari, Kirijo Mitsuru/Sanada Akihiko
Comments: 6
Kudos: 39





	the gaps between you and I

**Author's Note:**

> For the Persona We Got Your Back zine! I decided to write about Mitsuru and her changing the relationship throughout the game. I also couldn’t resist putting some Akihiko/Mitsuru hints. XD

**Summer**

The hot summer sun beat down with no reprieve and Mitsuru shielded her eyes with a hand as she walked home. Not escorted, not driven, but _walked._ She didn’t even have a bodyguard behind her, trailing her inconspicuously from five feet away. And while that was all strange enough, it was not as strange as the two boys walking slightly ahead of her. Her associates. The word didn’t sound right but Mitsuru wasn’t sure what else to call them. Certainly not friends or even classmates—neither Akihiko nor Shinjiro were in her school, let alone her class.

Holding his jacket over his shoulder, Akihiko looked over his shoulder. The bandage on his face looked like it was glued there, she couldn’t remember seeing him without one. “What did you call those monster things again?”

“Shadows,” Mitsuru answered quickly. “What you summon with the Evokers are—”

“Personas, right?” Shinjiro filled in, his hands in his pockets. Mitsuru resisted the urge to correct his posture, to straighten his slouched back. Like this, he seemed as tall as Akihiko instead of towering over him. “I can’t believe this is real. It sounds something out of a fantasy book.”

“Or a video game.” Akihiko grinned cockily, swiftly jabbing the air in front of him. “Secret identities, fighting at night, saving the world—we’re like superheroes.”

“Superheroes?” Shinjiro raised a brow, his expression wry. “Can’t think of one that has to shoot themselves _in the head_ to use their powers.”

Mitsuru rubbed her forearm uncomfortably. It was mildly disturbing how easy it was to press the cold metal to her head, to pull the trigger. To watch them do the same. Maybe she had something in common with her grandfather after all. “It does sound…silly, when you put it like that. Unfortunately, the design is required. It has to be stress-inducing.”

“More stress-inducing than fighting monsters in the middle of the night while surrounded by coffins?” Shinjiro asked. She couldn’t tell if he was serious or just rhetorical. His dry tone didn’t help.

“Quit complaining.” Akihiko cracked his knuckles. “At least we can fight them.”

“Fighting addict.” Shinjiro rolled his eyes before turning his attention back to her. “Where’d you say the dorms were?”

Mitsuru looked up at him. “They’re…”

She stared. Just when had Shinjiro gotten so close? Even Akihiko was, for that matter. At some point, they’d started walking abreast one another, the two boys flanking her, and she didn’t know what to make of it. Of the sound of her footsteps being echoed by two others. Of her voice being answered by another. A dog barked nearby, breaking her from her thoughts, and Mitsuru masked her unease with a polite smile. “Just past this temple.”

-x-

**Fall**

The sound of laughter echoed through the halls and Mitsuru paused as she closed her bedroom door. From the third floor, she couldn’t clearly make out their voices, only a messy cacophony as her companions teased one another. It was a sound she’d been hearing more often these days. Involuntarily, her lips curled into a smile and she locked her room.

Heading toward the stairs, she glanced at the nameplates as she passed them: Aigis, Yukari, Fuuka. The floor below was equally occupied, and her feet felt light as she descended to the ground floor. When they’d first arrived here, it had felt almost ridiculous to have three people in such a big building. Now they were nine strong and the building was more full than empty. Though it seemed the majority of residents were all crowding around the lobby. “What’s happening?”

“Mitsuru-senpai!” Crouching next to Koromaru, Junpei waved eagerly as she stepped onto the landing. “You gotta see what Yukari bought Koromaru.” He slowly rose, his shoulders shaking with laughter. “Have you ever seen anything so stupid?”

“It’s not stupid!” Yukari flushed a bright red and swatted Junpei with a rolled-up paper. “Aigis said he likes it!”

“Of course he would, he’s a dog.” Junpei cracked up again, undeterred. He covered his head with a hand, blocking her attacks. “Like he knows what’s cool or not.”

“Is that relevant?” Aigis asked, bemused. She cocked her head. “He is a dog.”

“What are you…” Mitsuru glanced at Koromaru and blinked. Then she blinked again. Perched on his head was a white headband with a pair of fluffy, white, distinctly not dog-ears. “Are those cat ears?”

“The pet shop put out their Halloween costumes,” Yukari defended weakly, averting her gaze. Quietly, she mumbled, “And I…never had a pet before…”

“I think they’re cute,” Fuuka agreed, squeezing Yukari’s shoulder. She gave a sympathetic smile. “Even Koromaru should get to dress up for Halloween.”

Mitsuru glanced at the plastic bag by Yukari’s feet. The overly stuffed plastic bag. Just how many costumes did she buy? Koromaru cocked his head, the headband staying on firmly. It was a little cute, she had to admit. Just a little. “I suppose so.”

“Ugh, is this a girl thing?” Junpei turned to Makoto with a grimace. “You don’t like them too, do you?”

Makoto crossed his arms, studying Koromaru seriously. As usual, he took his time, scrutinizing the whole affair with more gravity than needed. “They—”

Cutting him off before he could finish, Junpei groaned. “Why’d I even ask you, Mr. Popularity. Where’s Akihiko when you need him? Wait…” He stared at Koromaru and a wide smile spread across his face. “Hey, Koromaru, I’ll take you for a walk today.”

“…huh?” Taken aback, Yukari snapped her head toward him. “You hate taking him for a walk.”

“What lies! As though I could ever hate walking Koromaru. He’s saved my life so many times. Besides, I should do my part to help out.” Already heading toward the door, he whistled lightly as he picked up Koromaru’s leash. “Come on boy! And keep those ears on!”

Fuuka started at his receding back for a long moment before she leaned closer to Yukari and whispered, “You don’t think he’s—”

“Picking up girls?” Yukari sighed, crossing her arms as she glared at his departing figure. “Oh, he definitely is going to _try_.”

-x-

**Winter**

“It’s cold.” Mitsuru adjusted the scarf around her neck. Even layered up as she was, winter’s chilly bite clung to her bones and refused to let go.

Trotting quickly on the sidewalk in front of her, Koromaru yipped softly, his tail low. Not a single part of him resembled the dog Mitsuru was used to, the excited canine who lived for his evening walks. Then again, with everything that happened in the past year, she couldn’t blame him. Between the numerous sacrifices to stop Nyx, Mitsuru wasn’t sure she could smile anymore either.

“He says…” Aigis stared blankly at Koromaru. The wind picked up. She blinked. “He says…”

“It’s okay, I can guess.” Rubbing her hands in front of her mouth, she tried to warm them with her breath. “It’s been a while since anyone took him out for a walk. Everyone’s too busy, I guess.”

Aigis softly added, “The dorms are really quiet now.”

“I suppose now that we no longer have to fight, there isn’t really a reason to stay.” Mitsuru forced a crooked smile and patted Aigis on the arm. “I’m glad you came. I can’t remember the last time you left the dorms.”

“Yeah.” Aigis stared straight ahead. “Normally, he…”

A long beat passed. Mitsuru lowered her gaze, blinking back tears. It wasn’t too hard to picture a quiet boy with headphones strolling next to them, a sympathetic ear ready for their problems. Loss was a waterfall, ever pouring, and it leaked into every aspect of her life. She had a company she wasn’t ready to manage. Friends whose deaths she couldn’t explain. Everyone would remember Shinjiro as a delinquent. And no one would remember Makoto.

Even now, she hadn’t managed to remove their nameplates from their doors, the finality of it all too much. She’d peeked in once, just once, the rooms left as though their owners would return at any moment. Shinjiro’s cookbooks stacked messily on a table. A CD case left open on Makoto’s desk.

Koromaru whined, pressing his body against her leg and Mitsuru crouched down to pet him. “I miss him too,” Mitsuru murmured, burying her hand in his fur. “All of them. My father…” Her voice cracked and despite it all, it was still too hard to talk about him.

“Miss,” Aigis repeated, stretching out the word. She gripped her chest and looked down at Mitsuru. “Is that what this pain is? Missing? Longing?”

It was sometimes too easy to forget how new Aigis was to emotions. To being human. Standing up, Mitsuru embraced her gently. “Yeah. That is exactly what it is.”

-x-

**Spring**

The key turned with a soft click. There. It was done. The dorms were closed. Everyone had moved out and they had even managed to clean out every room, including the chairman’s. Somehow, his loss hurt more than anyone else’s, even her father’s. Despite what he did, her feelings toward him couldn’t settle, rage and loss warring with every thought. She wished it was more clear-cut, that it was easier to hate him.

“Are you done?” Akihiko asked, pulling her out of her thoughts. “Or did you forget something inside?”

“No, nothing.” Reluctantly, Mitsuru pulled the key out of the lock. Taking a deep breath, she turned around and down the steps. “It’s finally over.”

“Yeah. The dungeon, that time loop, everything.” Akihiko stuffed his hands in his pockets, walking on her left as they headed to where she’d parked her bike. “Can’t say I won’t miss it; it’s been, what, three years since we moved in?”

“A little more than that.” Mitsuru brushed her hair off her shoulder. It was longer now than when they’d first met. The distance between them was shorter than was back then too. If she wanted to, she could reach out and touch him. “I always thought it was too big for us.”

“Too big?” Akihiko snorted, amused. “More like too small—do you know how hard it was to find food when Junpei scavenged the kitchen?”

“Yes, because I’m the one who had to stock the fridge.” Mitsuru laughed and that also was something that changed. “But it served it’s purpose.”

“Yeah, I guess it did.” He rubbed the back of his neck, a thoughtful expression crossing his face. “You know, when we first came here, I didn’t really think much of it. But now…it’s home.”

“Home,” Mitsuru echoed. Yeah, that was the word for it. Home. A bittersweet feeling bloomed in her chest. “I’ll miss it. How close we were to everyone.”

“Me too.” He patted her shoulder comfortingly. “But my college is just ten minutes from your university, and well…we’re all still friends, right?”

She reached up and squeezed his hand. It had been scary, after Makoto died, when everyone was drifting apart. Now Aigis and Yukari were roommates, now Fuuka was organizing monthly meetups, now Ken was getting ready to join them in high school. They were still connected, despite everything. “Yes.”

They were all still friends and the future didn’t look as dark and scary as it used to.

Reassured, she smiled teasingly. “So, what was that about you becoming a cop?”


End file.
